Long-Term Neuroelectric Signal Recording from Severed Nerves

Six recording electrode units were implanted around the severed sciatic nerves of rabbits immediately after an axotomy was performed. Voluntary and involuntary motor neuroelectric signals (including individual action potentials) were recorded from the surface of the severed nerve for as long as 142 days after implantation, the average duration being 64 days. In order to study the course of the limited duration of the signal detection, a stimulation electrode was implanted around the sciatic nerve proximal to the lesion; evoked neuroelectric signals were recorded throughout the length of the experiment. The impedance of the recording electrode was also measured throughout the length of the experiment. The behavior of the above parameters, combined with histological observations, indicated that nerve degeneration accounted for the deterioration of signal detection.